Komboloi (worry beads), it is Greek "rosary", but totally secular thing (not religious) - old men in Greece used it to pass their time, as far I know (I saw taxists numbering beads while driving or on traffic lights in Athens). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Worry_beads LC apparently took the habit on Hydra.

tomsakic wrote:Komboloi (worry beads), it is Greek "rosary", but totally secular thing (not religious) - old men in Greece used it to pass their time, as far I know (I saw taxists numbering beads while driving or on traffic lights in Athens). https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Worry_beads LC apparently took the habit on Hydra.

THE LATEST INSTALMENT of MOJO ’60s (it’s Vol. 8 of MOJO’s ’60s-focused spin-off periodical, and it’s on sale in the UK from Friday, December 2) pays tribute to Leonard Cohen, whose iconic debut album emerged in 1967.

The poet-singer, who died on November 7, was a true original, and all the later tropes of his career – his debt to his muses, not to mention his turbulent relationship with live performance – were present at the start of his life as a recording artist.

Over 24 pages, Cohen’s biographer Sylvie Simmons tells his ’60s story, with contributions from his early mentor Judy Collins, who recalls his tortured New York concert debut.

“He started Suzanne, stopped a little way in and came off stage, shaking,” Collins recalls. “He said, ‘I can’t.’ I said to him, You have to finish this song, so I’ll come with you. So that’s what we did. He must have gotten over it immediately because the crowd went crazy. To be honest, people do love it when you fall apart on stage!”

We also learn how a classic album emerged against the odds (and in the teeth of Cohen’s objections) and how the singer’s vain pursuit of Velvet Underground ice maiden Nico led him to attempting occult sex magic and, indirectly, a jam session with Jimi Hendrix.

Our cover story features the late Leonard Cohen, a legendary songwriter who passed away at the age of 82 in November. In one of his final interviews, he discusses his last album You Want It Darker, his slow approach to songwriting, and working with his son, Adam.